OTTAWA, January 15, 2015 – The Canadian Dairy Commission (CDC) announced today a reduction in the support price of skim milk powder that will be effective March 1, 2015. The support price of skim milk powder will decrease from $6.4754 to $6.3109 per kg. The support price of butter will remain unchanged. Support prices are the prices at which the CDC buys and sells butter and skim milk powder to balance seasonal changes in demand on the domestic market. They are also used as references by provincial marketing boards to price industrial milk.
For dairy producers, this decrease in the support price should translate into a revenue decrease of 1.8% or $1.49 per hectolitre1 for industrial milk used to make products such as yogurt, cheese, and skim milk powder.
“This reduction follows a decrease in the cost of producing milk in Canada in the last year. This cost decrease can be seen mostly in feed, milk transportation, fuel, and interest paid” says Randy Williamson, Chairman of the CDC. “We are optimistic that this price reduction will help grow the demand for dairy products.”
The margin received by processors for butter and skim milk powder purchased by the CDC, as well as the carrying charges collected by the CDC to pay for the storage of normal butter stocks, will remain unchanged.
Prices received by producers for fluid milk are determined by provincial authorities through a process that is separate from this announcement. The overall price reductions to producers may vary depending on the pricing decisions made by provincial authorities. The impact of this decrease at the retail level will be influenced by many factors such as manufacturing, transportation, distribution and packaging costs throughout the supply chain.
The Canadian Dairy Commission, a Crown corporation created in 1966, is a key facilitator within the Canadian dairy sector. It is mandated to provide efficient milk producers with the opportunity to get a fair return on their labour and investment, and to ensure that Canadian consumers are provided with adequate supplies of quality dairy products. The CDC helps design, implement, and administer policies and programs to address milk producer and processor needs.
- 30 -
For more information, please contact:
Chantal Paul
Communications Services
Tel: 613-792-2040 / Cell : 613-790-0929
Email: chantal.paul@cdc-ccl.gc.ca
Web site: www.cdc-ccl.gc.ca
DM301262